The new Kindle app features include Whispersync technology which automatically syncs a customer’s last page read, bookmarks, notes, and highlights across all of their Kindles and Kindle apps. The app is available worldwide in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.

Using the new features of Windows 8, the Kindle app enables customers to pin their books to the Start screen for instant access to their favorite titles. Customers can also use the Share charm to easily share favorite passages and recommended books to friends and other apps without leaving the Kindle experience.

Apps are popular for phones, but 7″ tablets are a great ebook platform, especially for rich media. E-book reader software, available from Amazon, Apple, Google, Nook, Kobo, and others, will likely be available on the big three tablet platforms; IOS, Android, and Windows RT.

E-books using the tricks of HTML-5, incorporated into the new ePub-3 standard, allow some of the capabilities of applications. The benefit to developers is faster, cheaper software development, cross-platform compatibility, and higher prices — generally $1.99-$9.99.

The New York Times also released a Windows 8 app for Windows 8/RT. It will be available through the Windows Store for Windows 8 starting Friday, October 26. The apps feature tiles, which allow users to pin any of the sections and blogs to quickly see the latest headlines at a glance. Other new functions include Windows signature panorama display, Edge swiping for easy navigation, Cloud incorporation for article access from multiple devices, and Offline reading.